


The Best Time of the Year

by Rebel_Leader05



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Christmas, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Possible rise of skywalker spoilers, Rey Needs A Hug, Teenage Ben, abandoned Rey, if this fic continues, last minute gift shopping
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 00:53:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21948538
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rebel_Leader05/pseuds/Rebel_Leader05
Summary: A little girl was huddled behind the closest trash bin. Her clothes were filthy and her little body was shaking as though she were either cold or crying. Ben didn’t know which was worse. It was impossible to tell because her head was buried in her knees, which were pulled up to her chin.~~~Ben's last minute Christmas shopping is interrupted by a shocking discovery in the back of the busy mall's food court.
Relationships: Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 1
Kudos: 17





	The Best Time of the Year

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas everyone! I wish everyone a safe and happy holiday! 
> 
> Don't want to say too much about this fic. I think it could stand as a one-shot, but I am also interested in continuing if there is enough interest in it. There are some roads I'd go down as far as The Rise of Skywalker goes. Let me know what you think, and as always, happy reading!

Chapter One

There were people everywhere. The little girl hiding behind a trash bin in the food court was extremely uncomfortable as she squeezed herself as small as she could in the corner. Mommy and Daddy had told her in their serious _I mean business_ voice to stay there for as long as she could because it was important not to be seen. They’d promised they’d be back as soon as they could, but that she had to stay there in order to stay safe.

“No matter what happens, Rey. No matter who spots you. You _have_ to stay there. Can you do that for us, sweetheart?” Mommy had pleaded as she wrapped her arms around the little girl. It scared Rey how terrified Mommy sounded. She couldn’t remember Mommy ever sounding scared before.

Rey didn’t want to leave her parents in the mall but she knew better than to argue. They were grown-ups, so they must know better. It would be best if she did as she was told. They’d come back for her. They promised.

Of course, that was becoming harder and harder to believe the longer she stayed crouched behind that trash bin.

Rey tried taking her mind off her parents leaving her and staying behind the trash bin by admiring the few Christmas decorations she could see from her vantage point. Large ornaments and candy canes hung from the ceiling of the mall, and if Rey looked closely she could see the top of the Christmas tree way off in the distance. The sight of it calmed her somewhat. She felt that, no matter where she was and no matter how far away her parents were, she wasn’t alone.

Besides, her parents wouldn’t leave her right before the holidays. Would they?

That disturbing thought was enough to bring tears to the little girl’s eyes. She was afraid again. What if someone found her and tried to take her? Her parents had told her if someone tried to kidnap her, she needed to scream and make as big of a scene as she could, but her parents had told her to stay hidden and don’t come out for anyone. What if that meant good people, too? And what would happen if her parents did come back for her but she was gone? How would they find her again?

Her tears quickly turned into sobs, and before she knew it she was bawling. Rey tried to suppress her sobs by crying into her dirty black t-shirt, but to her small ears her cries sounded loud enough for the entire mall to hear. Someone was bound to find her soon.

Rey quickly and silently said a prayer in her head for her parents to return soon and put an end to this. She didn’t want to do the wrong thing and disappoint her parents. She wanted them to be proud of her, and she wanted to be good and do what her mommy and daddy told her so that Santa wouldn’t skip her house like he did last year, and the year before.

Rey brought her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, curling herself into a tight ball and burrowing her head into her knees. Her parents _would_ come back for her, and she wouldn’t move from this position until they came. She just needed to stay patient.

* * *

Ben knew he was going to be in for it. He’d told his mom that he was finished with his Christmas shopping, but he’d deliberately left one out so that he could get out of the house when his parents broke into one of their daily fights. There was only so much he could take. It was honestly pretty bad when he preferred braving the mall on Christmas Eve than putting up with his parents’ verbal spats.

He was already starting to regret his decision. It had taken him nearly thirty minutes to find a parking spot, and when he did eventually make it inside the mall there were people _everywhere._ Every store was filled to the brim with people who were doing exactly the same thing he was doing: buying last minute presents for loved ones.

After leaving the fifth store empty-handed he was tempted to give up and go back home. Surely his dad would understand if he was a gift short this year. Maybe it served him right for picking a fight with Mom on Christmas Eve and making her sad on one of her favorite days of the year. Maybe this was what needed to happen in order to make his dad see the light and for both of his parents to realize that they still loved each other and all the fighting was only serving to make their only son unhappy in his own home. Maybe things could go back to the way they used to be before his mom got promoted and his dad started getting longer trucking routes.

Before long Ben found himself in the food court. He hadn’t eaten anything yet and between that, the shopping, and the lack of results, his temper was rising quickly. He got in line for pizza, which, typically, was the furthest place from the rest of the mall. After waiting longer than anyone should have to wait for pizza, he claimed his slice and a soda, then went to sit at a table in the corner.

He picked up the greasy pizza and was just about to take a bite when he noticed something he'd never expected to see in the mall.

A little girl was huddled behind the closest trash bin. Her clothes were filthy and her little body was shaking as though she were either cold or crying. Ben didn’t know which was worse. It was impossible to tell because her head was buried in her knees, which were pulled up to her chin.

What the hell was a little girl doing hiding behind a trash bin in the mall on Christmas Eve? Was she hiding? Did she get separated from her parents? Wherever her parents were, Ben hoped they were wracked with guilt and frantic with worry over her.

He was just about to take a bite from his pizza, but another look at the girl stopped him. Annoyed with himself and the sense of moral obligation that had been drilled into him, he sighed as he stood up and made his way over to the girl.

He crouched down and waited for her to somehow sense his presence. When she didn’t, he cleared his throat loudly enough to be heard over the blaring Christmas music that was surrounding the entire mall.

The girl froze. Her shaking stopped and her hands tightened around her legs. She did not move from her position, however, and Ben was getting irritated. “Hey,” he uttered when it became clear she wasn’t about to look up.

When she didn’t move, he repeated himself. “Hey. Kid. Are you okay? Do you need help?”

Her grip was now so tight that her hands were turning white, though she did shyly glance up at him. His heart nearly broke then and there at the defeated, heartbroken expression she wore across her face. That paled in comparison, however, to the fear in her wide brown eyes. She was looking at him as though she expected him to attack her.

“Why don’t you come out of there so I can take you to a security guard or something? Maybe they can help you.”

At this the little girl frantically shook her head and buried her head in her lap once again. “I can’t,” she said, her words barely audible between being suppressed through her lap and the Christmas music that was continuing to blare through the food court.

“Why not?” he asked, curious despite himself.

The girl looked up at him once again. This time desperation mingled in with the fear as though willing him to understand something he couldn't know. “I’m supposed to wait for my parents. They said they’d come back for me.”

Ben nodded slowly, hoping he looked as though he understood even though he definitely didn’t. What kind of parents told their child to wait for them behind a trash bin in the middle of the mall on Christmas Eve? The place was crawling with people, and not all of them had good intentions.

Of course he couldn’t say any of that, especially to a little girl who couldn’t be older than five or six. So he asked a question instead. “How long ago was this?”

The girl shrugged, her gaze fixed intently in her lap. “I don’t know. How long do you have to sit before your butt starts to hurt?”

Ben laughed before he could stop himself. He hadn’t meant to laugh at the girl’s discomfort, though it seemed to ease the tension in her somewhat because his laugh caused her small lips to crack in some semblance of a smile.

“Why don’t you come out of there and sit with me for a bit? It’s not too far from the trash bin. That way if your parents come back they’ll still be able to find you.”

The girl’s brows pinched together as she thought about his offer. It was clear that she wanted to heed the orders her parents had left her with, but it as also clear that she was uncomfortable. She kept looking up at him, her eyes filled with a longing and something else he couldn’t quite place. The indecision was tearing her apart. Ben hated seeing such grown up emotions on a little girl.

“I have pizza,” he added after a few more moments of hesitation from the girl.

Those three words sealed the deal. The girl struggled to her feet and followed Ben over to his table. He tried hard not to stare at her as she took her seat across from him, making sure to sit on the side of the table with the vantage point of the entire food court so that she’d easily be able to spot her parents.

Once they were both seated Ben took the tray with the slice of pizza and slid it toward the girl. Her eyes widened as they took in the slice, but she did not immediately grab for it.

“Take it. You look hungry,” Ben urged when she did not move.

“Are you sure?” The girl’s voice was so small that it nearly broke Ben’s heart. What kid had to be told twice to eat a slice of pizza?

“Yeah. I’m sure. I can just go buy another one if I want.” Ben was relieved when the girl slid the plate closer toward her and took a huge bite of the pizza.

Ben watched with both fascination and anguish as the girl tore into her pizza as though it had been days since her last meal. Judging from her slight stature and the state of her disheveled clothes he didn’t think he was too far off base. Maybe she hailed from the homeless shelter and her parents were simply wandering the mall in search of work. He didn’t think so, but it was better than believing what he was starting to suspect was the truth: This girl had been abandoned here, on Christmas Eve of all days.

The girl was finished with the pizza much too soon. She stared at the empty plate sadly, but did not ask for another slice. Ben would not have blamed her if she had, but one glance at the line for the pizza place kept him firmly in his seat. Besides, the rest of his money needed to go toward a gift for his dad. He was already running late enough as it was. Soon his parents would be wondering where he was.

Of course, that left the matter of the girl. What did he do with her? Did he put her back where he found her as though she were nothing more than a toy and simply let himself fall into the delusion that her parents were coming back for her? After all, she wasn't his problem. He was simply the poor fool who'd found her first.

But what would happen if her face wound up on the ten o’clock news as a missing person? What if her body was found in a ditch somewhere? Ben couldn’t imagine the amount of guilt and regret he’d feel if that happened. He would look back at this moment and regret that he hadn’t done something to help her.

“Are you going to be okay?” Ben asked softly after he took a sip of his soda. He offered the cup to the girl, but she’d shook her head, sadness back in her eyes as she regarded the trash bin.

He didn’t believe her when she nodded. He didn’t think she was going to be okay, and he didn’t think she believed it, either. Deep down she must know that her parents weren’t coming back for her. They would have already if that had been their intention. But Ben didn’t know what else to do. He was only sixteen; what did he know about situations like these? Suddenly he wished his mom were here. She would instantly know what to do, and wouldn’t hesitate to do it.

“Thank you, mister. For the pizza,” the girl said, making the first move as she stood up and wrapped her arms around herself protectively.

“You’re welcome.” Ben watched as she began to slink back toward her hideaway, his heart breaking for the girl. He stood up and took the tray with the empty plate and followed her over to the trash bin to throw it away. She sat down and watched his movements carefully, and Ben didn’t have the heart to tell her she didn’t have to worry about him. It was the rest of the world she needed to fear.

“What’s your name, kid? I bought you dinner so the least you can do is give me that.” Ben tried to make the words sound light and innocent, but it didn’t work judging from the fearful look that had returned to the girl’s face.

“My mommy and daddy said never to give that kind of stuff out to strangers.”

“Well, what if I tell you my name? I’m Ben. Now I’m not really a stranger to you.”

The girl still looked unsure. She bit her lip as she regarded him intently. He smiled, trying to look reassuring, but did not offer any more words. It was up to her and her comfort level whether she wanted to offer that information to him. He knew he couldn’t force it if he wanted her to trust him.

“Rey.”

The word came from her lips so softly that Ben didn’t think he heard correctly. He frowned. “What was it?”

“My name. It’s Rey.”

“Oh. That’s a nice name. It suits you.”

The two fell into silence once again, and Ben found himself hesitant to leave. It didn’t feel right leaving her here all alone, but he didn’t know what else to do. Leaving her here was wrong, but turning her over to the authorities didn’t feel right, either. He decided he’d hang around for a little bit without her knowing. He didn’t want her to think he was some kind of creep who was stalking her. But the least he could do was make sure she was okay until her parents returned.

If that ever happened.

After he said his goodbyes he found an empty table within eyesight of her trash bin but far enough away that she wouldn’t be able to see him. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. When he took it out he saw he had a missed call and a text from his mom.

_Where are you? Your uncle will be here any minute._

Ben rolled his eyes at this. His mom ought to know by now that telling him his uncle was coming was all the more reason to keep him away for as long as possible. She knew they didn’t get along but still insisted on trying to force the two of them together.

_I’ll be back soon. Just picking up a last minute gift._

No sooner had he sent the text and put his phone back in his pocket did he see a large, overweight man make his way toward Rey’s trash bin. He dumped his trash inside and replaced his tray, but Ben knew the moment he saw the little girl when he smirked and bent down to her level. There was no way this creep was Rey’s dad.

Ben stood up and began to make his way over to the man. The moment he got within hearing range he heard Rey’s whimpers and the man’s disgusting voice telling her she needed to come with him.

Thinking quickly, Ben took his phone back out of his pocket and pressed it to his ear as he quickly stepped between the two. “Ah, _there_ you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

He grabbed Rey’s arm and spoke loudly in the phone as though he were talking to his mom. “Yes, mom, I found her. She ran off again, and I found her hiding behind one of the trash bins.”

Ben stole a glance at the man. He was hastily running away and was out of the food court before Rey could say a word. She was struggling to free herself from his grip, but Ben was too strong for her. He put the phone away then bent down so that he was eye level with the little girl.

“Are you okay?”

The words proved too much for Rey. She collapsed into his arms, her sobs loud enough to cause the people around them to look up and stare at the pair of kids. Rey wrapped her arms around him and squeezed with more strength than Ben had thought it possible for a girl her size to have. But he did not deny her the comfort she sought from him. She continued to sob into his chest. Ben returned her hug and knew, then and there, that he could not leave her here alone.

It could have been minutes, or it could have been hours by the time Rey finally calmed down enough to let Ben go. Her eyes were red and puffy and hiccups were escaping her throat from all the crying, but Ben knew the worst of it was over.

“Rey. I don’t think your parents are coming back for you.” He tried saying the words as gently as he could, but he knew it didn’t matter how much he tried to sugarcoat it. Rey needed to know the truth.

Her bottom lip quivered, and for a second Ben thought she was going to be overcome with more sobs. Luckily she was not. She nodded as she looked back at the trash bin where she’d spent most of the day.

“Why don’t you come over to my house? Mom and Dad would love having a kid around again. Besides, the police station is nowhere for a kid to spend Christmas Eve.”

Rey sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. The gesture was so endearing that Ben’s heart lurched painfully in his chest. He couldn’t believe this girl had been put in this awful predicament. Seriously, what kind of parents dumped their kid on Christmas Eve? At that moment he sort of hoped they did return, just so he could punch them in their faces.

“Wh-What will happen after that? How will my parents find me?” Rey asked, interrupting Ben's dark thoughts as she took his hand and gripped it painfully with both of hers.

Ben began leading her out of the mall, taking care to avoid the worst of the crowds for Rey’s sake. “I don’t know. We can ask my mom. She’ll know what to do. But for now let’s just get home and introduce you to my parents.”

“Okay.”

Rey didn’t say another word as the quickly left the mall. It wasn’t until they were both in his car and he was on the highway headed back to his house that Ben realized he never did get his dad’s last minute gift.


End file.
